Calling it the first of its kind, a pair of Toronto companies have joined forces to launch a completely app-based video series called Totally Amp’d.

Watching TV or web shows on your mobile device is nothing new, but Totally Amp’d is designed specifically for the iPad, iPhone and iTouch.

TV production company Shaftesbury and its digital media arm, Smokebomb Entertainment, are pairing with XMG Studio, a well known game app developer to bring the best of both worlds together: television and apps.

Totally Amp’d builds off two of the biggest trends in interactive entertainment: “transmedia storytelling,” which is about telling stories across platforms and formats using new technology; and “gamification,” using aspects of game design and mechanics in non-gaming areas.

“We just love the idea that it’s all in there — the series and the app games — together and seeing where we can go with that,” says Daniel Dales, CEO and executive producer of Smokebomb.

The 10-episode series, available in Apple’s app store Thursday, tells the story of five teenagers hoping to become the next big pop group.

Clearly aimed at tweens, Totally Amp’d takes some inspiration from Glee and features actors from Life With Derek (Ashley Leggat) and Degrassi: The Next Generation (Cristine Prosperi).

The series is already garnering some buzz in the TV and app industries as people look for ways to marry video content like TV shows with the exploding app world. Up until now, most TV or video apps have operating as so-called “second screen experiences,” like watching DVD extras on iPad while watching the film, an approach Disney used for its recent Bambi Blu-ray release.

Each five to 10-minute episode or “appisode” of Totally Amp’d has built-in activities with content that can be unlocked and manipulated.

For example, after the first episode is viewed, two songs are unlocked in the “music studio,” which is a rudimentary mixer. Viewers can add their vocals to the song or play with the levels or aspects of the instruments.

“You can change it to an acoustic version (of the song) with just guitar and drums,” explains Dales. “Or you can just have the vocal-only version, backed by the actors’ voices, which is pretty cool for kids. You can even direct the group’s music video.”

Still, there are challenges inherent in the approach.

For instance, Björk’s most recent album, Biophilia, had apps for each song, or games and visuals consumers could play along with the music. It got a rave review from TheNew York Times but didn’t seem to hit with consumers.

Totally Amp’d is nowhere near as esoteric. One of its draws is its younger target market, plus it’s been built from the ground up with the mobile experience in mind.

“Having the hybrid model has the challenges of both models, of TV and the web,” says Adam Telfer, vice-president of game development at XMG. “But the show also has to be on par with other series, as it’s competing with them.

“But what makes it different is that it is the marriage of the two. It’s having a TV episode in your pocket that you’re able to pull out and watch. You don’t have to worry about an Internet connection, everything is in the app. Our angle is that this is the TV and gaming experience together. Every other show can say they have an interactive element to it, not quite the way that we can with Totally Amp’d.”

Totally Amp’d will till need to reach its target audience from the morass of a very crowded iTunes Store. The first episode is available on YouTube and can also be seen free once you download the app. To unlock the following nine episodes costs $4.99.

Dales says this is just the beginning of the possibilities.

“Totally Amp’d is the first out of the gate, but where we see this going is also really exciting,” he says.

“One of things we’ve talked about is playing with things to affect the stories, like potentially choose your own adventure type stuff, with viewers participating in the story, perhaps going down different paths, really pushing the boundaries of all these things.”

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